


Once More with Feeling

by Shadowkat83



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Animal Shifter Dean Winchester, Bisexual Dean Winchester, Canon-Typical Violence, Dean Winchester Actually Deals With Feelings, Eventual Happy Ending, Eventual Relationships, F/M, First Kiss, Flirting, Fluff, Hurt Dean Winchester, Kissing, M/M, More Character tags to be add, More tags to be added, Multi, Time Travel, Time Travel Fix-It
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-26
Updated: 2020-11-14
Packaged: 2021-03-08 17:27:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,910
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27200423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shadowkat83/pseuds/Shadowkat83
Summary: It was finally over, Amara and Chuck were heading off to explore together, but first she wanted to reward Dean. Oh, how about a total restart? This time Dean's aware of what's at stake. But Amara gave him another reward, but this one has to wait...
Relationships: Ash/Castiel/Dean Winchester, Ash/Dean Winchester, Castiel/Dean Winchester, Jessica Moore/Sam Winchester
Comments: 11
Kudos: 45





	1. Chapter 1

Once More with Feeling

  


_Italics = thoughts/flashbacks/journal entries_

  


Chapter I

  


\--Dean--

  


The first thing Dean became aware of was the familiar and comfortable feeling of leather beneath him. The next thing he was aware of was the silence.

Dean opened his eyes, taking in his surroundings one thing at a time. First was the light outside of Baby's windshield. The second was the fact he was sitting in Baby's driver seat and apparently alone. Taking a look around revealed yes; he was alone; no Sammy and no Cas.

At the thought of his wayward Angel, something deep within Dean clenched in pain. The memories of their time together and everything they had been through went through his mind. Cas was his best friend, family, but he hadn't really treated the Angel much like a friend, much less family.

When he left to confront Amara and Chuck, to settle things once and for all, his thoughts had been on his best friend. All of the regrets and missed moments between them. His one wish had been to fix-it. A chance to fix everything, not just between him, Cas, and Sammy, but for everyone.

Pulling his mind away from these thoughts, Dean looked around him again, this time in confusion. Something just seemed off...

Reaching for his phone and only finding a flip phone really made him even more confused. “What the hell?”

Picking up the device and opening it to reveal the date: November 16, 2002. _2002?! That's fourteen years ago! What the hell?!_ He had somehow ended up back in time. Back to when Sam left for Stanford. _No, Sammy was at Stanford, had been for two months now_. Dean frowned, Sammy would be safe for now, but Dean would need to make sure he stayed that way. This means the yellow-eyed demon, Azazel, would need to be dealt with soon.

But, for now, his next step should be to organize his thoughts and gather data. The best place he figured to do that was at Bobby's.

With his mind made up, Dean headed for Sioux Falls. As he drove, he thought about what he would need to tell Bobby. He was debating whether or not to come out and tell the truth about the time travel. Then his thoughts suddenly halted...Bobby was **alive!** Not only was Bobby alive, so were many other of their friends and family. There was so much he could change.

That reminded him that he needed to stop and buy some notebooks to keep track of hunts and event information. He frowned.It might be a good idea to keep a personal journal too. There were so many issues that needed to be worked out, his treatment of Cas was one of them. How could he have let things get so far out of control?

He was pulled from his thoughts by pinging from his phone. He pulled Baby over to the side of the road to check his text messages.It seemed like his father had found a hunt for him to take care of. He sighed. Bobby would have to wait.

Turning Baby around, Dean headed back in the other direction. He would deal with this possible Werewolf hunt first then figure out what needed to be done about Azazel and the Apocalypse next.

  


After several pit stops along the way, Dean pulled into the parking lot of the motel in Whitefish, Montana. Once checked into his room, Dean pulled up all the info he had on the case. The attacks took place in the residential area near Glacier National Park, so it looked like they were using the park as a home base. He would need to be careful; he would be hunting in their territory.

His first task would be the morgue to take a closer look at the remains. But that would have to wait until in the morning. For now, Dean continued with his research, frowning as he dug deeper into the attacks. He knew werewolves; this wasn't sounding exactly like werewolves, though.Sure the missing hearts was correct, but werewolves didn't usually hunt in a pack unless they were changing tactics. Dean decided to put the rest of his research off until after he made that trip to the morgue; for now, time for bed.

Dean stood from the table and made his way to the bathroom, where he stripped off his close and took a long, hot shower. Once finished, he grabbed a towel to dry off and stood in front of the mirror. Wiping away the condensation that had gathered, Dean saw his reflection for the first time since he woke up in Baby. Looking in the mirror, Dean was speechless. He looked like a kid. Did 14 years really make that much of a difference? Yes, apparently, it did.

It hit him like a hammer then; he really was 14 years in the past. There was so much that hadn't happened, so much he could change. So many people he could save.

Dean shook those thoughts away, couldn't be dwelling on them now. He had a case to solve first, then he could make a plan. But his thoughts drifted for a moment. He remembered all of the people he had lost over the years. There were a few that stuck out more than others, but his thoughts were on two specific people or rather a person and an angel; Ash and Castiel.

It had taken Dean a while to come to terms with the thought that he was bisexual, and he had felt this more than once over the following few years. Though his father had cautioned him against developing attachments in their line of work, Dean couldn't help but feel that that thought wasn't entirely true. If he fell for someone who was supernatural or already part of the supernatural world, then they already knew the risks that came with this life; there would be no secrets. Ash lived at the Roadhouse and was part of the hunter life while Cas was an angel. Both of them knew this life and the risks and both had been willing to take that risk on him.

Dean shook those thoughts from his mind and got ready for bed. The next morning Dean woke up, made motel coffee and got dressed in one of his suits. Time for the Detective to make inquiries at the morgue.

After grabbing a quick bite to eat at the local diner, Dean headed to the morgue to talk to the medical examiner. The more he heard about the attacks the less he believed it was werewolves, but what other monsters could it be?

Making sure he had enough silver bullets to take down multiple targets, Dean got into Baby and headed for the first crime scene. It was about 29 miles away from Whitefish in Big Creek Campground. Remote forest, perfect place for wolves, or his monsters.

About forty minutes later Dean pulled into one of the parking spots of the campground and exited Baby, grabbing his duffel bag from the backseat. According to the sheriff, the first body had been found about two miles from the campground while the second was much further up along the trail. Checking to make sure his gun was loaded with silver bullets, Dean made his way from the campground towards the hiking trail. Following the trail, Dean kept his hunter senses on his surroundings. He was in the creature's territory now and he had to be careful not to get caught off guard.

Sometime later found Dean a mile up the trail when he spotted a set of tracks in the dirt of the side of the path. He frowned, this wasn't where they said the body was found. Looking carefully around the area, Dean found more tracks. He carefully followed the path gun drawn and ready, just in case. He moved as quietly and as carefully as he could through the trees, keeping his sense of his surroundings, even as followed the tracks.

It wasn't until he reached a break in the trees that he spotted a second set of tracks. Kneeling down in the dirt, he got a good look at what were clearly claw marks in the soft soil. _Wolves,_ he thought. He frowned, wolves didn't normally chase humans, not unless they were threatened or near a den. This wasn't making any sense. It was clear though that the attack didn't happen here, there was no blood. Frown deepening, Dean took a closer look around and spotted more tracks in the dirt.

Nodding, he stood back up and proceeded down the trail, following the path set by the wolves. About a half-mile away from where he found the first set of wolf tracks he spotted a dull rust-colored substance upon one of the leaves of a fern. Moving closer to get a better look, it was dried blood. Looking around him, Dean spotted more blood on the surrounding plants.It appeared he was getting closer to the kill zone. There, no more than a few yards from the first sign of blood was a puddle upon the ground.

As the hunter crouched to get a closer look at the blood, a soft noise off to his right caught his attention. Dean's head rose and he looked around him carefully, his gun held firmly in his grasp. There was no other noise, but Dean didn't let down his guard. His eyes carefully swept the area around him once more, before turning back to the main crime scene. The congealed puddle of blood had begun to separate; clearly, it had been there for a while. It fit the timings of the attacks, but it still wasn't making sense. This wasn't the behavior of typical wolves or werewolves for that matter.

Dean frowned, completely confused, _W_ _hat exactly was he hunting? This didn't fit any of the familiar monster patterns..._

Dean heard a soft sound somewhere off to his left, right before a heavy weight slammed into his side. Dean grunted from the impact and cursed as his gun was knocked out of his grasp. As he scrambled to his feet, he glanced to where his gun had landed. He made a mad grab for it, but his hand fell short as another heavy weight crashed into him. Dean caught a glimpse of silvery fur as he hit his knees.

His head whipped around, trying to keep track of the wolves as they darted in and out of the cover of the trees. He watched their movements carefully, remembering that wolves were pack hunters. He had to keep his wits about him if he wanted to not end up like the last victims.

Another flash of fur had him moving, just as sharp teeth bit the air where he had been standing. Dean whirled around keeping the silver wolf in his sights, as he edged towards his gun. While he did have a knife in his belt sheath, he felt more comfortable with his gun in his hands.

A soft rustle of moving branches caught the hunters' attention and he dodged yet another strike, this time by a different wolf; a dapple gray one. Dean eyed the wolf, aware that the more silver-colored one was still off to his right somewhere. One or two wolves, Dean was sure he could handle, but the problem was he had no idea exactly how large this pack was. He'd come prepared to take on werewolves or skin-walkers, not man-eating wild wolves or whatever these were.

Dean took a moment to get a closer look at the wolf that was studying him just as closely. He could tell right away by the intelligence in its eyes that this was no normal wolf. He knew wolves were smart, but the calculating look in the eyes of this one was more human than beast. It was most certainly a wolf shapeshifter then; a pack of shapeshifters. He'd never faced this kind of creature before, so Dean wasn't quite sure his silver bullets would have an impact. At least, not unless he went for the obvious head or heart shot. It would have to be dead on, there was no room for error, but first, he had to get to his gun.

Making sure to keep a close eye on both his surroundings and the two wolves, Dean inched his way around the clearing in the direction of his gun. He kept one hand close to the hilt of the knife in his back sheath as he moved; he didn't know how many wolves were in this pack, so he was being extra cautious. He had just about reached his gun when a heavy weight caught him in the side. Pain ripped through his shoulder as he fell to his knees. Grunting with effort, Dean covered those last few inches towards his gun and turned just in time to put a bullet in one of the lunging wolves' hearts.

Covering the bleeding wound with his other hand to put pressure on it, Dean pushed himself painfully to his feet and took aim at the next attacking wolf shooting it in the head. Dean kept track of his surroundings as he started to make his way back towards the path that leads to the campground. A few more rounds of silver bullets took care of the rest of the pack.

Once he was sure it was safe, Dean slumped against the nearest tree, the adrenaline from the attack wearing off. He cautiously removed his hand from his shoulder to get a better look at the wound. Three long gashes decorated his shoulder from where the wolf’s claws had caught him. As he stared, the bleeding tapered off and the wounds started to slowly heal.. Shaken, Dean pushed down the implications of his faster healing. He replaced his hand on the wound and made his way towards the campground where Baby waited for him. He'd deal with that once he got back to the motel in Whitefish. 


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

\--Dean--

Dean arrived back at the motel, grabbed his stuff from Baby's backseat, and unlocked the door to his room. Tossing his bag on the floor, Dean headed towards the bathroom, stripping off his flannel and t-shirt as he went. Standing in front of the bathroom mirror, Dean got a better look at the wound. Frowning at the blood, he wet a washcloth and cleaned away the blood, revealing three long ragged gashes that were slowly healing. Under Dean's watchful gaze, they closed until only long pink jagged marks remained.

"What the fuck?" he exclaimed, dread creeping upon him. "Shit!" This was the last thing he expected to happen. _What the hell was he supposed to do now?!_ Dean took a deep breath and pushed aside his rising panic. He would deal with the consequences as they came. For now, it was time to seek out Bobby.

After a quick shower, cleaning off the grime from his hunt, Dean headed to bed with the intention of getting an early start; he had a 17-hour drive ahead of him.

Dean awoke to the sound of the horn blasting outside his room. He turned groggily to look at the bedside clock. The glaring red numbers read 5:30 am. "Fuck," he muttered, no use in going back to sleep. Dean groaned and stretched before tossing aside the covers. _The right time to get my day started. First is coffee._ Dean then moved to the coffee maker and started a pot while grabbing clean clothes out of his bag. After getting dressed, he moved to pour a cup, but the smell caught his attention. He gagged at the aroma, his nose a lot more sensitive to the scent than usual. It didn’t smell quite right this morning. Forgoing the coffee, Dean turned off the pot, grabbed his things, and headed for Baby. He'd stop at a diner on his way to Bobby's and grab food and coffee there.

Mentally going over his to-do list, Dean headed for the nearest gas station to fuel up and grab a few notebooks and pens. He then pulled into a diner and headed inside. It was the scent of cooking bacon that made his mouth water. It confirmed his decision that this was the perfect place to have a bite. Grabbing a booth and ordering coffee and a plate of pancakes with bacon, Dean open's one of his notebooks and titles it: Shit That's Gonna Happen. In it, he starts making a list of the up-incoming events that he plans on changing. In another notebook, he records all that had happened on his hunt, leaving out the wounds he had received. By the time he finished writing, his breakfast had arrived. This time the coffee was smelling much better, and the scent of the bacon had him drooling.

A day later, he arrived at Bobby's place, the gruff old hunter coming out to greet him, as Dean pulled Baby into the scrap yard.

Dean couldn't stop the grin as he saw Bobby walking out of the house. It was so **good** to see him, “Hey, Bobby.”

“Wasn't expecting a visit. What's up?”

Dean shook his head, “a few things actually. That hunt I just went on?” At Bobby's nod, Dean continued, “wasn't exactly a werewolf or skinwalker. And I think there might be consequences on the full moon.”

Bobby frowned in confusion, “What kinda consequences?” He turned to head into the house. Bobby made his way to the kitchen, pulled a couple of beers out of the refrigerator, and handed one to Dean.

Dean took the offered beer and took a long swallow. He sighed before beginning to speak, "I followed the dead camper's trail to a bloody clearing not too far from the campground. There were wolf tracks all over the area. Then I got attacked by wolves. One of them caught me in the shoulder." Dean paused, then braced himself for Bobby's reaction to the next part of his story, "I managed to take out the three wolves and get back to the motel...."

Bobby frowned as Dean once again hesitated in continuing, "Dean?" His tone was full of concern as he observed his boy.

Dean took a breath before saying the next part in a rush, "The gashes were mostly healed by the time I got back to the motel. I think they infected me..." He flinched once the last of the words were out of his mouth, expecting a bad reaction from Bobby.

Bobby noticed Dean bracing himself and took a moment to parse what the other hunter had said. His first instinct was to find out where the creatures were and take care of them, but then he remembered that Dean already took care of the wolves that attacked him. Bobby's eyebrows pulled together in sympathy as he studied Dean's expression. It was like Dean expected him to turn on him or something. “Do you know what it was that bit you?”

Dean shook his head, “No. It looked just like a wolf...” He trailed off thoughtfully, remembering the incident with the coffee and the sounds that woke him up, “I think my senses are improving, though. I mean, with the cars that woke me up and the way the motel coffee smelled like ass...”

Bobby hummed, “Improved senses, just like a wolf.” He then turned towards the calendar on the wall. “The next full moon is in four days. Why don't you remain here so we can see if anything happens.”

Dean nodded, shoulders slumping with relief. “Yeah, sounds good. Let's not tell anyone else what happened, though. Especially my dad.”

Bobby agreed to that wholeheartedly. They spent the rest of the day catching up on everything since the last time they spoke. Dean told him about Sammy leaving for college and his Dad going on an extended hunting trip leaving Dean to his own devices.

After four days of his senses developing to the point of pain, Dean was more than ready for that night's full moon. He and Bobby had made sure the panic room was prepared. They had decided to be cautious, not knowing how Dean would react once the changes started.

They both watched as the sun sank lower in the sky before heading down to the panic room. Dean took a deep breath, already feeling the beginnings of the change happening, "All right. Let's do this."

Bobby nodded and closed the heavy door to the panic room behind Dean. After the door shut, per Dean's request, Bobby headed upstairs, leaving Dean alone.

Dean took a deep breath as his senses tuned even more into his surroundings. That's when he noticed the first changes. It started as an ache deep in his bones that grew progressively worse as the sun sank in the sky. Dean took deep breaths, trying to push the pain to the back of his mind, but it only got worse. A sudden deep and piercing pain dropped him to his knees as his bones cracked and started to reshape themselves. He tried to muffle his screams, but it was to no avail. The pain was just too much.

Eventually, it got too much for him to handle, and Dean passed out, welcoming the darkness and release from the pain.

He didn't know how much time had passed when he finally was able to open his eyes. He blinked, his eyes adjusting to his surroundings before he took stock of everything. He remembered the pain and passing out; just before that was the pain of his bones shifting. Dean hesitantly pushed himself to his feet only to stumble as he realized he had four, four _paws_. Green eyes dropped down to look at his feet, and tawny-colored fur met his gaze. _Right, he was in his wolf form. That explained the four paws and the tail._

Once he was sure he had adjusted to his new form, Dean noticed his thoughts. He was still him, no instincts pressing against his mind. They were there but... _I'm in control! I thought..._ He didn't know what he thought at first, but he was much better. _This I could get used to. This could be useful._ He then padded towards the door to the panic room, using his ears to find Bobby just outside the door.

Bobby stood outside the panic room door, his hand on the handle, as he called out to Dean, "You doing okay in there? Still you?"

Dean barked in answer, and Bobby took the chance of pulling open the door slightly. A tawny-colored wolf stood there looking up at him with familiar green eyes. "Dean?"

Dean barked again in answer, and Bobby then pulled the door all the way open once it became clear that it was still Dean in there. Dean padded out of the room past him and headed towards the stairs. Bobby followed and watched as the wolf-headed for the back door. It became clear then what he wanted. Dean wanted to test out his new form, take it for a test drive.

Bobby opened the back door of his house and watched as Dean took off running. He left it open as he returned to his study, likely spending the rest of the night with his research, he figured. He knew he probably wouldn't see Dean again until sunrise.


End file.
